Bellanwila: Another Meethotamulla in the making

A block of land along a vast stretch of Jaya Mawatha off Bellanwila-Dehiwela- Maharagama Road has turned into a massive dumping ground creating a health hazard.

Residents said the nauseating stench from garbage soaked with storm water during heavy rains experienced at present had compelled them to breathe polluted air.

They pointed out that neither the Borelesgamuwa Urban Council nor any other institution had taken steps to clear the garbage that would soon become another Meethotamulla if neglected.

A resident W. Rohan Perera said that a vast area of the land had been vandalised by haphazard soil excavation and that it created a huge pit of about 150ft long and 60ft wide and that it had caused extensive environmental damage.

A vast area of the land had been vandalised by haphazard soil excavation and that it created a huge pit of about 150ft long and 60ft wide and that it had caused extensive environmental damage.

“Soil excavation stopped when several houses were built by the residents obstructing the road access to the site,” he said.

“Meanwhile, the houses were affected by a recent earth slip. Now the people use the pit as a dumping ground that turned into a dengue mosquito breeding ground. The Borelesgamuwa UC has totally ignored its responsibility to clear the dumping ground,” he said.

A trader in the area H.D. Cyril Perera said that they had been forced to breathe polluted air.

He said authorities did not pay any attention even during the recent dengue prevention programme launched by the government or during the Bellanwila Esala Festival.

He warned that the people living in the surrounding area would face a serious danger similar to that of Meethotamulla.